In 1983, Australia won the America's Cup yacht race for the first time and he declared a national holiday, saying: "Any boss who sacks anyone for not turning up today is a bum."

He also set a Guinness World Record during his years as a Rhodes scholar at Oxford University, downing two-and-a-half pints of beer in 11 seconds.

Bob Hawke is a giant of Australian politics. He and Paul Keating internationalised the Australian economy. He established APEC and radically deepened Australia’s engagement with Asia. He established Medicare. Together with Therese and the entire nation, I mourn his passing.